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After Long Road, Nothing Left to Do but Win

Oscar Pistorius of South Africa finished second in his heat of the 400 meters and qualified for the semifinals with a time of 45.44 seconds.Credit
Jed Jacobsohn for The New York Times

LONDON — Oscar Pistorius rocked back and forth near the start line Saturday as the public-address announcer introduced him as the Blade Runner. An Olympic Stadium camera cooperated by panning to the pair of carbon-fiber prosthetics that he wore with his track suit.

Pistorius, a 400-meter runner from South Africa, soon crouched to the track and placed his prosthetics into the starting blocks. Then, with the firecracker sound of the starter’s pistol, he became the first double-amputee runner to compete in the Games.

This has been an Olympics full of firsts: Each nation has sent female athletes, including those from Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Brunei. A black woman, Gabby Douglas, won the Olympic all-around title in gymnastics. A man from South Sudan, the world’s newest country, is competing in the men’s marathon as an independent athlete.

While these milestones have been widely embraced as signs of social progress, Pistorius’s presence raises more complicated questions about the line between disabled and able-bodied athletes — and it may ultimately prove to be more of a watershed as the ranks of disabled athletes grow. Many competitors have welcomed him and called him inspiring, but others continue to debate whether his artificial legs give him an unfair advantage over sprinters using their natural legs. On Saturday, Pistorius finished second in his heat with a relatively modest time of 45.44 seconds to reach the semifinals. He allowed a smile in the starting blocks and said later that he appreciated the historical significance of the race.

Recounting an admonishment by his mother, Sheila, who died when he was 15, Pistorius said: “A loser isn’t the person that gets involved and comes last, but it’s the person that doesn’t get involved in the first place. It’s a mentality we’ve always had. When you start something, you do it properly. The passion you start something with, you finish it off with.”

Pistorius, 25, was born without fibulae in his lower legs. When he was 11 months old, his legs were amputated below the knee. He began running track after sustaining an injury playing rugby. Competing on carbon-fiber legs, called Cheetahs, he began to blur the distinction between what is considered able and disabled.

In March 2007, Pistorius finished second in the 400 at the South African national championships. But in January 2008, the world governing body of track and field ruled Pistorius ineligible.

The governing body said the carbon-fiber blades violated its ban against springs or wheels that gave an athlete a competitive edge over those not using such devices. The prosthetic legs allowed Pistorius to run as fast as elite sprinters while expending less energy, the governing body said.

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Pistorius, a double amputee, made history by even competing.Credit
Franck Robichon/European Pressphoto Agency

In May 2008, the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which mediates international disputes, struck down the governing body’s ban and said the prosthetic legs gave Pistorius no real advantage. Still, it was too late to compete at the Beijing Olympics.

The scientific debate has continued about where to draw the line between fair play and the right to compete. A 2009 study published in The Journal of Applied Physiology said Pistorius could take his strides more rapidly and with more power than a sprinter on biological legs.

Some resistance remains to his presence in London, where Pistorius will also run in the 4x400-meter relay. Michael Johnson, the world-record holder in the 400 at 43.18 seconds and a two-time Olympic champion in the event, now retired, said recently that he considered Pistorius a friend and a great ambassador. But Johnson also said, “Because we don’t know for sure whether he gets an advantage from the prosthetics that he wears, it is unfair to the able-bodied competitors. “

On Saturday, Kirani James of Grenada, the reigning world champion at 400 meters, said of Pistorius: “He created history. I have a lot of respect for the guy. It takes a lot of courage, a lot of confidence, to do what he does.”

But when asked if Pistorius, who is not considered a medal contender, would be so eagerly embraced if he ran as fast as the world’s best quarter-milers, James said, “That’s another story.”

Bryshon Nellum of the United States offered more unqualified tribute. While a student at the University of Southern California in 2008, Nellum was shot in his legs in a case of mistaken identity, threatening his sprinting career.

“If something like that happens to you and you lose both legs, some people would give up,” Nellum, who also reached the semifinals, said of Pistorius. “For him to continue to run, it’s unbelievable. It’s amazing.”

As he left the blocks, Pistorius popped straight up while others drove forward in a low, aerodynamic position, less vulnerable to wind resistance.

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Pistorius struggled for six years to reach the Olympics.Credit
Jed Jacobsohn for The New York Times

This is among the reasons the suggestion that Pistorius has an advantage on his carbon-fiber legs is inaccurate, said Robert Gailey, a professor of physical therapy at the University of Miami School of Medicine, who helped Pistorius gain the right to compete.

“His ability to compete is a testament to what a great athlete he is, not because of any technological advantage,” Gailey said Friday in a telephone interview. “Literally, he has a disadvantage throughout much of the race, but he’s been able to overcome it. He’s an elite athlete. He just happens not to have feet.”

Without lower legs, Pistorius must generate his power with his hips, working harder than able-bodied athletes who use their ankles, calves and hips, Gailey said.

Pistorius also struggles more against centrifugal force in the curves than runners with biological feet, and his arms and legs tend to begin flailing in the homestretch more than those of able-bodied runners, costing him valuable time, Gailey said. Pistorius’s stride is not longer than other runners, as many presume, Gailey said.

“It’s not like he’s bouncing high with a giant spring,” Gailey said. The blades “basically allow him to roll over the foot and get a little bounce.”

He added: “The human foot operates like a spring, and his feet operate like a spring. But the human foot produces more power than the blades do.”

At least six disabled athletes have now competed in the Summer Olympics. In London, Pistorius joined Natalia Partyka of Poland, who participated in table tennis despite being born without a lower right arm.

“It’s one thing being here, and it’s another thing performing when you’re here,” Pistorius said. “For me, that’s a task I take seriously.”

A version of this article appears in print on August 5, 2012, on page A1 of the New York edition with the headline: In One Race, Runner Glides Past Milestone. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe